ABSTRACT
Internationalism and nationalism are frequently presented as contradictory concepts but from its inception, the international trade union movement was both an arena where national interests did battle and a driving force towards international development. The International Secretariat of National Trade Union Centres was subsequently founded at a conference in Copenhagen on 21 August 1901. By the beginning of the war, the German leaders of 'International Federation of Trade Unions' had turned the organisation into a well-oiled machine that fulfilled an important supporting function for its members in the field of the exchange of literature and information. The consequences of the Paris congress would be felt for a long time in the organisational sphere. Several options were discussed, but finally they were narrowed down to the choice between staying in Amsterdam and moving to Berlin. Amsterdam had indeed started off with high aspirations, with safeguarding the peace at the top of its agenda.
